Criminal AI-as-a-Service in 2026: How the Underground Market Is Operationalizing Cybercrime

<h2 style="direction: ltr;">Introduction</h2><p style="direction: ltr;"><span style="font-size: undefined;">The underground market for criminally oriented generative AI has moved beyond the early hype surrounding 'malicious chatbots.' The gradual integration of AI as a productivity layer within cybercrime operations has become the dominant story, indicating that while the potential for fully auton